Improvement in gates



- J'. U. PIESTER.

Gate.

No. 198,369. Patented Dec. 18, I877.

, f IZ %zz. 1525 ATTORNEY NPETERS, PHDTGUTNQGRAFHER. WASNINGTUN D CUNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN U. FIESTER, or WINCHESTER, OHIO.

IM PROVEMENT IN GATES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 198,369, dated December18, 1877; application filed November 10, 1877.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN U. FIEs'rER, of Winchester, in the county ofGuernsey and State of Ohio, have invented a new and valuable Improvementin Gates; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear,and exact description of the construction and operation of the same,reference being had to the annexed drawings, making a part of thisspecification, and to the letters and figures of rererence markedthereon.

Figure 1 of the drawings is a representation of top view of my improvedgate. Fig. 2 is a view thereof in an open position, and Fig. 3 is a sideview-thereof.

This invention has relation to improvements in gates.

The object of the invention is to devise a gate which may be opened andclosed by a driver or horseman without dismounting, and which willremain open while he is passing through the gap.

The nature of the invention consists in the combination and arrangementof certain parts, as hereinafter more fully described.

In the annexed drawings, the letters A A designate the gate-posts,arranged at asuitable distance apart, and B the gate closing the gapbetween said posts.

The gate is composed of a number of spaced slats, a, rigidly securedbetween two end rails, 11, braced by a diagonal strut, 0, upon eachside, and of two loose slats, a, arranged the one above the other, andsupported at a suitable distance apart by pins extending through the endrails b aforesaid. The slats a each engage an independent catch, 0,secured to post A upon opposite sides, the one above the other, and thesame distance apart as the said latch-rails a.

d d designate metallic hanger-rods, pivoted to the top rail of the gate,extending downward respectively to the upper and lower rails a. They arethen bent at right angles and carried through staples 0 upon the edgesof rails a, thence upward through staples e at the top of the gate, andtheir free ends bent down, as shown at 6 forming a stop, which preventsthe said hangers from escaping from the said staples c, and serves as ameans of attachment for the mechanism that disen gages the latch-railfrom the catches in the act of opening the gate.

The gate is hinged to the post A, so as to swing either way, and becapable of vertical movement by means of two spaced angular metallicpintles, f f, supported by an interposed wooden block, j", rigidlysecured to the post A and metallic eye-plates g g, respectively securedto the top and bottom of the gate, and engaged respectively with thepintles f f.

The eye-plate 9 extends beyond the gate in angular form, and is receivedbetween the branches h of a strong U-shaped metallic guard, C, the endsof which are secured to post A, and which is arranged in an inclinedposition at the bottom of said post.

When the gate is pushed open from either side, the eye-plate g, theedges of which are beveled or rounded, comes in contact with the guardO, and ascends the incline, thereby raising the gate automatically, sothat when the said gate is released it will gravitate naturally to theclosed position in descending the incline.

Post A has at its upper end a cross-piece, h, projecting equally on bothsides of the fence, and provided at each end with a vertically-vibratingangular latch, E, that is maintained in a position for engaging astaplecatch, j, upon the top of the gate, between the stops e, by meansof its vertical arm 1', that rests against the vertical face of thecrosspiece h.

When the gate is opened the latches E engage the staple-catch j, andhold it open until the vehicle has passed through, when it may bedisengaged by the following mechanism Two fulcrum-posts, D D, areerected next to the gate-post A in a preferably crossed position,carrying at or near their upper ends, respectively, the operating-leversJ J, of which the power ends are provided with a pendent rope, k, andthe Weight ends with a rod, 1. These rods are secured to the levers insuch manner that they rotate freely in their bearings therein, metallicferrules m being applied thereon to afford such bearings, and theirlower ends are provided with eyes 0, that engage the horizontal portion0 of the hangers, hereinbefore mentioned, as stops, and which extendbeyond and under the latches.

The levers J J extend out at each side beyond the radius of the gate.When an equestrian or driver draws down upon one of the ropes k, thehanger d, connected by the rod 1 with the lever J, from which the saidrope depends, is vibrated upward, thereby disengaging the latch-rail afrom its appropriate catch on post A, and by continuing this movementthe gate is swung away from the operator, being at the same time raiseduntil it is at right angles to its former position, when the vibratinglatch becomes engaged with the latch-staple aforesaid, and the gate iskept open. The vehicle having passed through the gap, the driver seizesupon the rope is depending from the other lever, and, by drawing downupon it, raises the other hanger, thereby disengaging the latchaforesaid from the staple, and allows the gate to gravitate into theclosed position.

The effects above set forth are obtained from either side of the gate.

The connecting rods, having free rotary movement in the ends or ferrulesof the operating-levers, neither bind nor twist, so that the swinging ofthe gate is nowise impeded.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination, with the swinging gate B, having loose longitudinalrails a, and the post A, having catches 0 ,01 the vibrating hangers d d,the connecting-rods l, and the vibrating levers J J, substantially asspecified.

2. The combination, with a swinging gate, B, having latch-rails 0/, thepost A, having catches c and the vibrating hangers d d, havinghorizontal arms 0 of the staple-catch j between said arms, thecross-piece h, having latches E, the levers J J, and the connectingrods1, substantially as specified.

3. In combination with the rising gate and its shoe 0, the pintles f andf and the U- shaped guard h, secured to the gate-post A, and to thelower pintle f whereby the gate is elevated when opened, so as to engageand be held by the spring-catch E, substantially as specified.

In testimony that I claim the above I have hereunto subscribed my namein the presence of two witnesses.

JOHN U. FIESTER.

Witnesses:

J. G. LINN, H. S. HINsoN.

